About Utah Politics - February 25, 2014

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Tuesday, February 25, 2014 - 7:45am

Local News Highlights: Daily Briefing

How to Sound Smart About Utah Politics - February 25, 2014

An alternative to Medicaid expansion moves forward. A House committee approves a resolution supporting a move for the state prison. Legislation would make it more difficult to gather signatures for a citizen initiative.

Countdown:

16 days until the final day of the 2014 Legislature
17 days until the Utah candidate filing period opens
21 days until the Utah Democratic Party caucus meetings
21 days until the Utah candidate filing period closes
23 days until the Utah GOP caucus meetings
60 days until the Utah State Republican and Democratic conventions
119 days until Utah's 2014 primary elections
252 days to the 2014 midterm elections
615 days to the 2015 elections
680 days until the 2016 Iowa Caucuses
986 days to the 2016 presidential election

Today's Utah political news highlights:

A legislative committee approves an alternative to accepting Medicaid expansion money from the feds [Tribune].
Lt. Gov. Spencer Cox talks about his involvement in the negotiations over Medicaid expansion [Utah Policy].
A House committee unanimously advances a resolution in support of moving the state prison away from Draper [Deseret News, Daily Herald,Tribune].
Rep. Jason Chaffetz visits lawmakers, voices his opposition to the "Count My Vote" initiative [Deseret News, Tribune].
Sen. Curt Bramble says the state may have to repeal a pair of immigration reform laws passed by the legislature due to inaction by the federal government [Tribune].
A group of media outlets and educators form a non-partisan coalition to televise political debates [Utah Policy, Tribune.]
Gov. Gary Herbert meets with President Barack Obama and asks for more help dealing with drought conditions in the Western United States [Tribune].
Rep. Jon Stanard is proposing legislation to make it more difficult to gather signatures in order to get a citizen initiative or referendum on the ballot [Utah Policy].
The House approves a bill imposing reforms on the payday lending industry [Tribune].
The House Rules Committee uses a technicality to avoid taking action on a bill that would allow lawmakers to abstain from voting on legislation on which they have a conflict of interest [Utah Policy, Tribune].
A Gallup survey says 60% of Utahns are members of the LDS faith [KSL].
You must see this amazing video of Lt. Gov. Cox from when he was in high school [Utah Policy].

On this day in history:

Samuel Cold patented his revolver pistol in 1836.
Hiram Revels became the first black U.S Senator in 1870.
The 16th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which gives Congress the power to collect income taxes, went into effect in 1913.
Communists seized power in Czechoslovakia in 1948.
Cassius Clay (who later changed his name to Muhammad Ali) became the world heavyweight boxing champion in 1964.

Today At Utah Policy

Lt. Gov. Cox on Medicaid, Count My Vote and John Swallow (Video)
Utah Lt. Gov. Spencer Cox says he hasn't faced much of a learning curve moving from the legislature to the executive branch, but he has had to adjust to the scope of the work....

You Have Got to See This Video from Lt. Gov. Spencer Cox's High School Days
Ah, the wonders of the internets! We dug up this amazingcampaign video of Utah Lt. Gov. Spencer Cox when he was running for student body president of North Sanpete High School in 1992 and asked him about it....

Lt. Gov. Spencer Cox Plays the Utah Policy 'Lightning Round'
Utah Lt. Gov. Spencer Cox has just 60 seconds to answer as many stupid questions as possible. It's the Utah Policy "Lightning Round."...

Sparks Fly in House Rules Committee Meeting
Ahh, the Utah Legislature -- where an arcane rule can be used to stop a vote on another rule that you may not like....

Legislators to Meet with Members of Utah's LGBT Community (Video)
Sens. Jim Dabakis and Steve Urquhart are hosting a conversation between Utah leaders and members of the LGBT community on Wednesday evening.Dabakis says the forum is an opportunity to open a dialogue that didn't exist before."Many of our legislators have never met a transgen...

Proposed Legislation Would Make it Harder to Get Citizen Initiatives on the Ballot
While it may be a small change, the Utah Legislature has a bill before it, introducedMonday, that could make it more difficult for citizen initiative petition or referendum supporters to gather the number of voter signatures required to get their measures on the ballot....

New Media/Political Partnership Aims to Foster More Political Debates
Flash back to 2012 when when Dan Liljenquist was desperately trying to get Orrin Hatch to debate ahead of their GOP primary matchup....

Rep. Greg Hughes vs. the Utah Policy 'Lightning Round'
With just 60-seconds to answer as many stupid questions as possible, Rep. Greg Hughes plays the UtahPolicy.com "Lightning Round."...

Hughes Discusses Preschool Education, Breathalyzers and Medicaid (Video)
Rep. Greg Hughes (R-Draper) says he's not surprised his plan to expand preschool education to at-risk kids has run into some opposition, but he's confident once people understand what he's trying to do, it will pass....